The Eagle: A Year in Review

by Doireann Minford, Copy Editor and JS Law and Political Science

The unfortunate luck bestowed upon Trinity’s graduating class of 2024 was that our college life began, and for two years was continuously marred, by the global pandemic In between Zoom orientations and society coffee mornings, I saw a call for first years to apply for the junior editorial board of The Eagle, Trinity College Dublin’s Law Gazette. As a fresher who admittedly idolised their Leaving Certificate English teacher, I could think of no role I would enjoy more. By a stroke of luck, I was chosen alongside three other first years. While initially having to deal with feelings of intimidation as I edited alongside more experienced (and plainly better) editorial board members, I watched The Eagle go from strength to strength under the leadership of Samantha Tancredi, then Editor-in-Chief. I was amazed by the dedication of the board in perfecting articles for the issues. I can remember spending hours on Zoom ensuring pieces would be perfected before they went to print.

This past year has been no different Although Zoom lectures have thankfully been replaced, The Eagle has continued to grow This year we have published three issues, with a total of 50 articles A highlight was, of course, our collaboration with DU Amnesty. The launch of this article was a great time to spend time with members of the Editorial Board, as well as meet contributors, members, and our collaboration partners in DU Amnesty. What stuck with me, however, was the impassioned speeches by our Editor-in-Chief

Emma Bowie as well as Deirdre Walsh, the Activism Coordinator from Amnesty Ireland Given the current state of affairs in international politics, with particular reference to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, human rights have never been more relevant Even though we are only an undergraduate publication in a university on a tiny island in Western Europe, we have the power to shed a light and bring awareness to the darkest corners of the world. Through the dedication of both the junior and senior editorial boards, as well as DU Amnesty, this issue hopefully provided an insight that readers would not have had otherwise

Keeping with this theme of social justice, we also had the incredible opportunity to collaborate with Trinity FLAC and hold an article competition based on minority rights in the international context. Senior Sophister student Laoise Murray won the competition with her powerful piece highlighting the plight of Uyghur Muslims in China and the failure of the UN to intervene In Hilary term, we also collaborated with Trinity College Law Review for a panel event and essay competition on “The Home and Housing.” Once again, we received impactful submissions that focused particularly on the failures of the Irish Government to address the housing crisis plaguing the State. At the intersection of law and politics, The Eagle has published articles engaging students on the most prevalent issues of our time. It is my hope that this will continue in both Volume 10 and long past

When I joined the editorial board in first year, the blog was in its early stages. However, under the leadership of Olivia Moore and then Ellen Hyland it has gone from strength to strength. As Copy Editor this year, I had the opportunity to edit countless articles and was extremely proud to publish articles from both Trinity and Cambridge students. This year, the blog was expanded beyond its traditional format with publications of an article as Gaeilge by editorial board member Caoimhe Molloy as well as a recap of this year’s Law Society Senior Mock Trial written by Editor-in-Chief Emma Bowie. We also had impressive submissions such as Ciara Hogan’s assessment of the 2022 Italian General Election as well as Chloe Asconi-Feldman’s powerful article on sexual violence during wars. Though biased, it must be said that the impressive range of articles on the blog provided readers with quick, but informative reads throughout the year, and I have no doubt that this tradition will continue at The Eagle for years to come

The Eagle would not be in existence if not for our sponsors, contributors, readers, and junior and senior editorial board members PRO Eoin Ryan worked tirelessly this year to provide us with colourful and engaging social media graphics. Deputy Editor Mark McGrane went above and beyond in organising the board to prepare us for publication. Last but certainly not least, Emma Bowie, as our fearless leader had extremely tough shoes to fill following Matthew O’Shea, Editor-in-Chief of Volume 8 Yet, this did not stop her from publishing three impressive issues while organising essay competitions, the launch and the day-to-day running of the gazette Without her hard work and support of other board members, Volume 9 would not have been such a success. My past three years in Trinity have been defined by my time on The Eagle board. As we approach the 10th anniversary of the gazette, I hope that next year we see more people getting involved than ever as readers, contributors, and board members so that The Eagle may soar to new heights